Istanbul: On the last leg of a European tour to advance Ukraine's application to join NATO and obtain more weapons from allies, President Volodymyr Zelensky entered crucial negotiations with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday.
On the eve of the 500th day since Russia's invasion, Zelensky admitted during the talks in Istanbul that Ukraine's counteroffensive was advancing slowly. During a two-day visit to Prague, he requested long-range weapons and artillery from the US and other allies.
Without long-range weapons, Zelensky told reporters, "it is difficult to carry out an offensive mission, it is difficult to conduct a defensive operation, to be honest."
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According to earlier US media reports, the Pentagon was preparing a new arsenal of weapons and ammunition that might include contentious cluster bombs that can scatter numerous small explosives over a large area.
Human rights organisations criticised the prospect while Ukrainian officials welcomed it, arguing that the bomblets could go off without being detonated and endanger civilians as a result.
Zelensky said that NATO did not appear to be in agreement regarding the membership of Sweden and Ukraine after visiting Bratislava after Prague. "And this is a threat to the strength of the alliance," he continued. A summit is scheduled to take place in Vilnius next week.
Zelensky has stated that he wants the summit to result in a "invitation" to join NATO for his nation, which has been battling Russia's invasion since February 2022.
Jens Stoltenberg, the head of NATO, stated that he anticipated that the alliance's leaders would "reaffirm that Ukraine will become a member of NATO and unite on how to bring Ukraine closer to its goal."
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The Kremlin, which tried to break its escalating international isolation by forging strong ties with Erdogan, is closely monitoring Zelensky's first trip to Turkiye since Russia's invasion. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, told reporters on Friday, "We will very closely follow the results of these talks.
"It'll be interesting to learn what was discussed, we think. It's crucial, he continued. Analysts anticipate Zelensky to pressure Erdogan to approve Sweden's NATO membership before the summit.
Turkiye is opposing Sweden's bid due to a long-running disagreement over what Ankara claims is Stockholm's relaxed stance towards purported Kurdish militants residing in the Nordic nation. Erdogan is a key mediator in the conflict; discussions with him are likely to centre on the future of a contract to transport grain from Ukraine across the Black Sea.
Zelensky and Erdogan are both in favour of extending the agreement with Russia that was negotiated by the UN and Turkiye and allows Ukraine to export grain to international markets while the war is still going on.
If Russia declines to approve its extension, the agreement will expire on July 17. Erdogan has made an effort to use his good working relationships with Vladimir Putin of Russia and Zelensky to mediate the end of the war.
Turkiye organised two preliminary rounds of negotiations and is pushing for additional meetings.
Zelensky travelled to Sofia to discuss weapons deliveries with Bulgaria, a significant ammunition producer, before visiting Prague and Bratislava. The Kremlin criticised the Ukrainian leader's trip to Bulgaria, alleging that he was attempting to "drag" other nations into the conflict.
Following allegations that the Ukrainian nuclear plant Zaporizhzhia had been mined, the head of the UN's nuclear watchdog said on Friday that inspections of several areas of the plant were "making progress."
Concerns about the possibility of a radioactive disaster at Europe's largest nuclear plant have been raised as Ukraine and Russia have accused one another of plotting a provocation at the site under Russia's control.
IAEA representatives had successfully "completed the tours of the cooling ponds and other places," Rafael Grossi said in Tokyo. The IAEA officials had not yet been able to access the facility's rooftops, but they had "not seen any indications of explosives or mines," he claimed.
Following the largest Russian missile attack on civilian infrastructure in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv since the invasion, rescuers on Friday discovered a tenth body among the wreckage of buildings, according to the mayor.
42 other people were hurt in the attack, including three children, according to the interior ministry of Ukraine.